Tag Archives: Spiritual Gifts

“Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.” I Corinthians 6:19, 20 NASB

Today the Christmas season has officially started. It has started on a day most call Black Friday. A long and tiresome day many will spend looking for a value. The value of a gift isn’t always determined by monetary value. In fact , I have received many gifts over the years that are worthless as far as the world is concerned. To me however, they are priceless. They are priceless because of who gave them. Because of who gave them they are among my greatest treasures. Yet, if a stranger were to give me a gift my personal value of the gift would only be its monetary value. Although I would be grateful for the gift I wouldn’t treasure it in my heart. Since there are no emotional ties to the gift giver, the gift itself would not have any emotional value.

Some of the greatest emotional gifts are gifts given by people who love you. Because they love you they poured their heart into the gift in which they gave. In my opinion the greatest of these gifts are gifts they crafted with their own hand. Some of the greatest monetary gifts are gifts that were created by the original masters craftsmen and artist. An original Picasso painted by Picasso is worth much more than a copy. Knowing that you have in your position the very piece that the craftsmen poured his heart and soul into brings great value.

We have received a gift from not only the master craftsmen of a piece of art or a particular object, but, the Master craftsmen of all-God Himself. James 1:7 says, “Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights” He is the master craftsmen of all. He said, “Let there be light, and there was light” for this reason He is the Father of Lights. He is the Father of “every good thing given” and “every perfect gift.”

The gift that He gave us in creation was for a singular purpose. God is eternal, therefore He existed in eternities past prior to creating the earth. However, God chose to create this earth to populate it with people of whom He desired to have a relationship with. God’s singular purpose in creation was to have a relationship with mankind.

Unfortunately, just after God created a perfect world man corrupted it with sin. Man didn’t only corrupt the world with sin they corrupted their own hearts with sin preventing them from fulfilling the purpose in which God created them for, the purpose of having relationship with Him and therefore living a life that brings Him glory.

This leads us to the greatest gift the world can ever receive. A gift given by the master of all. A gift given by one who loves us more than all. A gift given with which He poured His heart and soul into. A gift given at a great personal cost to Himself. The gift He gave was His own Son, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” (John 3:16). The high price He paid was His Son’s life, “For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.” (Romans 5:7). Truly, the greatest gift was given at a great cost.

This is part 2 of 28 devotions that will go through Christmas Eve. If you would like to subscribe to my daily devotions place your email in the follow tab on the right. Also, please share.

Romans 6:23 tells us that, “the wages of sin is death.” For this reason Jesus died to pay the price for sin. Not that He sinned, but that He took upon Himself the sin of all humanity and died for all who would accept Him as their atoning sacrifice and therefore be cleansed of their sin. I Corinthians 5:21 says, “He (God) made Him who knew no sin (Jesus) to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

In Genesis we see God fellowshipping with His new creation Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. God told them of every tree in the garden they can eat free, with the exception of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. God said if they eat of that tree they shall surly die. (Genesis 2:16).

Although Adam and Eve tried to pass the blame of their sin to another, they were still held accountable for their actions resulting in the fall of all humanity. They could not blame the serpent for their sin. They made a conscious choice, do we obey God or disobey God. Although they knew the command of God and the consequences of their disobedience they personally chose to disobey God thus they sinned.

Did Adam and Eve die that day as God said they would? Yes. They died spiritually. They lost fellowship with God and were removed from the Garden of Eden and cast into a mean cruel world now corrupted by sin to labor by the sweat of their brow until the day they physically died. Sin has grave consequences. Had Adam and Eve not chosen to sin they would still be alive today. They would not have earned the wages of sin.

The bible speaks of three types of death, spiritual death, physical death, and the second death which is eternal death. Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:1, “And you were dead in your trespasses and sins,” and again in Colossians 2:13, “you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh.” Paul wasn’t talking to people who were physically dead but spiritually dead.

Sin separates us from God. God’s heart is to have a relationship with us. However, sin prevents us from having that relationship with Him. Separation from God is spiritual death. For this reason Jesus died for us so our sins can be forgiven and we would no longer be spiritual dead but alive in Christ and through Christ. Romans 6:23 not only tells us that the wages of sin is death but also says that the free gift of God is eternal life. Accepting the sacrificial atonement of Christ cleanses us from our sins and reconciles us into a right relationship with God.

The bible is clear-all have sinned. Isaiah 53:6, “All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way;” Romans 3:23, “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God;” I John 1:8, “If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us;” I John 1:10, If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him (God) a liar and His word is not in us.”

Since all have sinned, all stand in need of salvation through the sacrifice Jesus paid on the cross. Because of the sacrifice Jesus paid the bible says in I John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” As we see clearly that all have sinned we see just as clearly that the offer of salvation is for all. Romans 10:13 says, “For “WHOEVER WILL CALL ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED.”

Unless we are caught up in the rapture we will all die physically. However, we are not physical beings, we are spiritual. For those who have accepted Jesus atoning sacrifice and received salvation from their sins the bible says, “I say, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord.” There they will remain with the Lord spiritually until the resurrection of the dead where they will be given resurrected and glorified bodies, the same type of body that Jesus already has.

Those who refuse to accept Christ’s atoning work of salvation from their sins will then stand before God after their physical death and be judged for their sins. At the time of their judgment they will be cast into the eternal lake of fire where there is no longer any hope of redemption. The bible calls this the second death. (Revelation 20:11-15).

For this reason the church and every individual Christian should take with absolute urgency the mandate to preach the gospel to all creation. How else will they know? If they choose to reject, they have made their choice. However, they have made the choice with the knowledge of the command of God to accept His Son, and the consequences of choosing not to.

The word gospel is used ninety nine times in the NASB. The Greek word that is translated into gospel comes in two forms. It is either used as the noun eungelion that literally means good news or as the verb euangelizeo referring to the announcer of good news.

The gospel or the good news is specifically about Jesus. The Angel of the Lord came to Joseph and encouraged him to not be afraid to take Mary as his wife. The Angel of the Lord said to Joseph in regards to this child Mary miraculously conceived, “She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:21). If the message is not centered in and on Jesus and His work of redemption on the cross it is not a true Gospel.

The term gospel is used with many references and descriptions in the New Testament. It is called the gospel of grace in Acts 20:24, the gospel of the kingdom in Matthew 4:23, 9:35, 24:15, the gospel of peace in Ephesians 6:15, and an eternal gospel in Revelation 14:6. However, the gospel is clearly rooted in the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. Mark introduced his gospel as, “the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” Paul in his introduction of the book of Romans, which is a declaration of the gospel, calls the gospel, “the gospel of His Son.” (Romans 1:9).

Jesus being born of a virgin as the Son of God was uniquely qualified to be the savior of the world. He was also uniquely qualified to be the atoning sacrifice for sin because of His sinless nature and the fact that He fulfilled all righteousness. For this reason Jesus is the only means to salvation. Jesus Himself said in John 14:6, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.” Acts 4:12 says, “And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”

Paul told the church of Corinth that he declared unto them the gospel. He then went on to tell them exactly what the gospel was. He said in I Corinthians 15:3-4, “For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.” The work of the gospel is the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Paul said that this message was of first importance, meaning that it should be the priority in our lives. Apart from the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ there is no good news. Apart from the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus all humanity would stand hopelessly lost condemned in their sins awaiting eternal damnation.

The fact of the gospel is not the good news in and of itself. Just knowing the fact of the person of Jesus and the fact of the works of Jesus do not save us. The gospel becomes the good news for our lives when we allow it to have an impact on our lives through faith in who Jesus is and what He has done. Accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior should change every area of our lives as we make it of first importance to us.

The gospel fist impacts our lives for today. Jesus said in John 10:10, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” When we receive Jesus as our savior He comes to live within us empowering us to live for Him allowing us to reap the benefits of a relationship with God as a child or God, a joint heir in Christ Jesus, a holy nation and a royal priesthood. Jesus gives us life today, and not ordinary life that simply exists, He gives us abundant life. Certainly no one should want to die without knowing Jesus as their Lord and Savior. They will be eternally condemned to hell if they do. However, if one were to live to be one hundred and twenty years old he shouldn’t want to live even a moment separated from the abundant life that Jesus freely offers.

The fact still remains that we will not live in these fleshly vessels forever. Hebrews 9:27 says, “It is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment.” If we die physically without knowing Jesus as our savior we will then be judged for our sins. The punishment for our sins is eternity separated from God in hell. However, those who have accepted Jesus as their savior will not be judge for their sins. The impact of the cross has blotted out our sins and removed our sins as far as the east is from the west. Romans 6:23 says, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” We will live for eternity in the paradise of heaven with the Lord. This truly is good news. A good news worthy of accepting, and a good news worthy of sharing.

The ultimate act of love is seen in the act of God so love the world. Romans 5:8 says, “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” God didn’t wait for us to change our wicked ways and then turn to Him. Apart from the power of the blood of Jesus and the work of the Holy Spirit we can’t turn to God. Apart from the work of God we would never even want too. Philippians 2:13 says, “It is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.”

We did not choose to love God, He chose to love us. I John 4:19 says, “We love, because He first loved us.” He chose to love us despite the fact that we were living in rebellion against Him. He loved us enough to pay the price for our sins on the cross of Calvary, suffering greatly in humiliation and anguish knowing that His sacrifice would purchase redemption of sin and reconcile us into a right relationship with Him. We love the Lord today because He first loved us.

Jesus said in John 15:13, “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.” Jesus demonstrated His love towards us by laying down His life. As a result of the cross God also requires us to lay down our lives. Not as a dead sacrifice, but as a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God. Romans 12:1 says, “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.” Because of the mercies of God, which is the act of Jesus on the cross, we are urged to give our lives as a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God.

Jesus told us to preach the gospel to all creation. In order to do this we must sacrifice. We will sacrifice our time, our energy, and sometimes our money. We may think that the world is wicked and cruel and therefore is not worthy of my sacrifice. But, we need to ask ourselves, “Are we worthy of Jesus sacrifice?” Absolutely not! Fortunately for us, God didn’t give us what we deserve; instead, He gave us grace and mercy-because of His love. We to are called to demonstrate grace, mercy, and love to a hostile and often rejecting world. We as Jesus did, are to overlook the hostility and rejection of the world in love, hoping to win a few for the Lord.

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” (John 3:16). God loves the world and everyone in it. Does He love their ways? Of course not. This is why He sent His Son to die on the cross and save them from their sins empowering them to repent and live for Him. Paul writes in Romans 10:14-15, “How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher? How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of good things!” The feet of those who carry the gospel to the unsaved are beautiful to God. They are carrying the good news of Jesus salvation to the world in which God loves so they can hear, and therefore believe. But how will they hear unless we love them enough to go and tell. By telling we carry on the ultimate act of love-God’s sacrificial love.

“HOW BEAUTIFUL ARE THE FEET OF THOSE WHO BRING GOOD NEWS OF GOOD THINGS!” Romans 10:15 NASB

Clearly the church is failing in regards to evangelizing this lost world. Thom Rainer recently wrote in a blog titled, Where Have All the Baptisms Gone? “I recently reported the latest statistics for our denomination. It’s not a pretty picture. Our membership declined again, this time by 105,708. And our baptisms were down to 314,956, the lowest level since 1948. But in 1948, we only had 6 million members. Today we have 16 million members. We are reaching less people for Christ, even though we have 10 million more members than we did in 1948.”

Even the most spiritually blind person among us today can see that this world is becoming morally bankrupt while they slip further from the Lord. Immorality of every sort is socially acceptable toady in almost every facet of society, even in many churches. Bible believing Christians are left asking the question why. Why is this world slipping further and further away from God’s righteous standard?

We are quick to make excuses that it is a sign of the times we are living in. We say the Lord is coming back soon and we are therefore seeing the apostasy. There may be truth in these statements, but this truth should cause us to work even harder for the kingdom and not less. We are even quick to pass the blame on everyone else. We say that the government, the judicial system, the news media, and the entertainment industry for the most part are anti Christian liberals who stand against us. We say things like, “If we can get Washington right we will reclaim this nation for the Lord.” However, there is a major problem with statements such as this. It is not the government’s job nor responsibility to lead this nation to the Lord-it is the churches.

The clear picture that statistics such as this, that Thom Rainer quoted, and many more like it, is that the church is not doing its job. God has given a clear biblical mandate to all Christians to share the gospel message of Jesus. Just prior to His ascension Jesus gave the final instructions to His disciples to go into all of the world and proclaim the gospel. (Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:15-16, Luke 24:47-49, John 20:21). Jesus said in Acts 1:8, “but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.” He said, you shall be, or you will be, My witnesses. Jesus intentions for His church to share the gospel are abundantly clear.

Jesus asked the disciples in Matthew 16:13, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” They said in the next verse, “Some say John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; but still others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.” Jesus then asked them in verse fifteen, “But who do you say that I am?” At this time Simon boldly answered in verse sixteen, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” In the next verse we see that Jesus was greatly pleased with Simon’s answer and said, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.” Jesus then renamed Simon Peter saying, “I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church.”

When Jesus renamed Simon He called him Peter which is Petros in Greek. Petros is a small stone or a rock. A brick can fall under the category of a petros. It is certainly not a foundational stone that someone would build a house on. Rather it would be the small stones, like bricks, that would rest upon the foundational stone.

After Jesus named Simon Petros, He said “upon this rock I will build my church.” The word that Jesus used for rock was a different word than the one He used for Simon Peter. Jesus used the Greek word petra as the rock that the church would be built upon. Petra is a large rock, a foundational stone that is much different than the small stone, petros, Simon was called. Clearly Peter is not the foundational stone that the church is built upon; Jesus is. Jesus is the one who gave His life so He could redemption the church. To say any other is the foundation of the church is not only biblically inaccurate, it is outright blasphemous.

Peter clearly understood what Jesus was talking about. Peter wrote in I Peter 2:4-5, “And coming to Him as to a living stone which has been rejected by men, but is choice and precious in the sight of God, you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house.” Who is the living stone? Jesus is. He is the one that was rejected by men, but choice and precious in the sight of God. We are the ones who come to Him also as living stones that are being built up as a spiritual house. This is the perfect portrait of the church.

The church is not a physical building, an address, or location. The church is a spiritual house. Jesus is the living stone that is the foundation. We are living stones being built up on that foundation. Just as bricks are laid atop of the foundation of the building we are laid atop of Jesus who is the foundation of the church. We are also laid atop of all of the other believers who came before us such as Peter. Peter was named Petros because he was the first to confess Jesus as the Christ. Upon our confession of Christ we are saved and therefore laid atop of the foundation of Christ as the church.

After Peter gave us this wonderful picture of the structure of God’s spiritual house he then gave us an understanding of its function. He said in I Peter 2:9, “you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” Jesus didn’t save us to give us a get out of hell free card. He saved us out of darkness and into light so we would have a relationship with Him and so we would proclaim to the rest of the world, which remains in darkness, of His excellencies and His marvelous light so they too would be drawn to the light and have a relationship with Him and not stand in darkness separated from God doomed to eternal condemnation. Clearly, this is one of the main functions of the church; the whole church.

Paul wrote in Romans 1:16, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.” If the gospel is truly the power of God for salvation, as the Word of God says that it is, and we refuse to share the gospel we are then guilty of condemning this world to hell. How will they repent of their sins if we don’t tell? How will they walk out of darkness and into the marvelous light if we don’t tell? How will they know their sins will eternally condemn them if we don’t tell? “How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher? How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of good things!” (Romans 10:14-15).

The feet that carry the good news may become callused, bruised, and bloody; they may become dusty, dirty, and grimy; they may become tired, weary, and worn, but they are beautiful to God. Far, they are bringing the good news of Jesus to a lost world of whom He loves.

“But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place. For we are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing; to the one an aroma from death to death, to the other an aroma from life to life.” II Corinthians 2:14-16 NASB

This scripture reminds us of the fact that when we follow Jesus, God, “always leads us in triumph in Christ.” Regardless of what we face in this life we will always have victory. This scripture doesn’t teach us that bad things will never happen to those who follow Christ. Rather, it teaches us that God will get us through whatever life throws at us and allow us to have the victory. However, the victory only comes through a whole hearted pursuit of Jesus within our lives. On the other hand, pursuing our own plans, goals, and desires will certainly lead to disaster.

When we live for Christ, not only are we blessed and led to triumph, God manifests the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Christ through us. This sweet fragrance first becomes a fragrance to God. When we come to know Christ as our Savior and then led into triumph through Christ it manifests a sweet fragrance before the very throne of God and blesses God Himself. Heaven rejoices when a sinner is saved and led to victory in Christ. (Luke 15:7). God our Father, who loves us and has sacrificed for us, certainly rejoices.

Not only are we a pleasing fragrance unto God, we are a sweet aroma of the knowledge of Christ to those who are being saved through accepting the gospel message of Christ and therefore give their lives to Him, and to those who are perishing because they have rejected the gospel. We are not responsible for those who reject or those who accept. That is a personal decision on their part. However, we are fully responsible as to whether or not we will live in pursuit of Jesus where the sweet aroma of Christ will then be manifest from within us so that the world can have the opportunity to inhale that sweet aroma and therefore have the opportunity to make the choice. How then do you choose to smell in the stench of this world today? I chose to smell like Christ.

“Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us” II Corinthians 5:20 NASB

Clearly all Christians are called to ambassadors for Christ. An ambassador is an individual living in a foreign land representing the interests of their own nation. Their goal should always be what the best interest for their nation is and how to progress the interests of their nation. The nationality of all Christians, regardless of their location, is the Kingdom of God and Jesus is our King. As ambassadors for Christ our goal should always be, what the best interest of Christ is.

When King Solomon was praying to the Lord in the dedication of the temple he asked of God to look not just upon them but also on the foreigner who would pray to God, “so that all the peoples of the earth may know Your name, and fear You as do Your people Israel” (II Chronicles 6:33). God’s heart has always been that all of His creation would turn to Him and trust in Him. The temple was a testimony of the power and the presence of God in the midst of His people.

Today through Christ the New Testament teaches us that our bodies are now the Temple of God. (II Corinthians 6:19). God chooses to reside in us today through His Spirit for the same reasons He chose to reside in the Temple amongst the nation of Israel, so that the lost people of the world may know Him through His presence within us. As an ambassador we do not promote our own agenda, or our own plans, or even our own ideas. Everything we do points to the one of whom we represent.

As Christians we are in this world but are not of this world. We are foreigners in a foreign land. This world is naturally hostile toward the things of God yet we are called to represent God in this hostile world. Paul told Timothy in II Timothy 3:12 “Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” When we simply try to blend in with the world and not allow Christ to shine through us we not only dishonor the Lord, we also do this world an injustice.

The world thinks that their way of living is perfectly fine, that they are on the right track, and they have everything figured out. However, they will never find peace, joy or any sense of contentment in what this world has to offer. I believe that God has put a natural void in the heart of every man that longs for God and cannot be filled by anything else. When the people of the world see the joy, the peace, and the sense of satisfaction within the lives of Christians they are then confronted with the realization that something is missing in their lives.

When we are ambassadors for Christ sharing the marvelous light of Christ we welcome the foreigner who has come to realize how brutal this world has treated him; the foreigner who is ready to give up his citizenship to this world and become a citizen of God. The church has now become the embassy welcoming him as a refugee-but more than that. Now that he has transferred his citizenship, he is a fellow citizen of the Kingdom of God-a brother in Christ. Apart from the ambassadors for Christ how would the foreigner ever know of Jesus marvelous light, how would he know he is welcome, how would he ever become a brother? He would be left to his doom.